Kellyanne Conway sidelined for a week straight after disastrous CNN interview

White House counselor and “alternative facts” inventor Kellyanne Conway frequently retreats from public view following a PR disaster, but last week’s meltdown on CNN could portend a more permanent banishment.

Conway was benched by the White House following the revelation that she was instrumental in giving White House access to tell-all author Michael Wolff, and her return from the wilderness did not last long.

Last week, Conway left the familiar confines of Fox News to appear on CNN, and the result was an embarrassing dumpster fire during which she could not stop mentioning Hillary Clinton, while insisting that she never talks about Hillary Clinton.

Conway then proceeded to melt down on Twitter over that interview, and followed up by melting down on “Fox & Friends” the next morning.

That disastrous attempt at clean-up was Conway’s last cable news appearance to date, and while Conway has been temporarily sidelined before, this time could be different.

Since Conway’s meltdown, White House Director of Strategic Communications Mercedes Schlapp has drastically stepped up her cable news presence, according to a TV Eyes search. Schlapp appeared at least 10 times in that period on Fox News alone, with a few other appearances on CNN and Fox Business Network.

Schlapp joined Trump’s communications team in September, but prior to this week, she was an infrequent cable news guest.

Time will tell if Conway truly has been replaced by Schlapp, but if so, don’t expect much to change. While not as spectacular a liar as Conway, Schlapp has distinguished herself early on, and has plenty of time to make up the ground.